Escambia County Middle School students will join the rest of the country in viewing the total solar eclipse on Mon., Aug. 21.

ECMS Science Teacher Anna Wheeler said anyone within the path of totality will be able to see the eclipse, and observers outside of the path will only see a partial eclipse.

“This event occurs when the moon passes between the sun and Earth, and blocks all or part of the sun’s light,” Wheeler said. “The last time the U.S. saw a total eclipse was in 1979.”

The solar eclipse is slated to take place around 1:30 p.m. CST in the area.

One of the main concerns with the eclipse is student safety.

Wheeler said the students will be viewing the eclipse with certified solar eclipse glasses provided by BASF.

“These glasses will provide the students with a chance to view and experience the eclipse and not only learn about this celestial event,” she said.

“During this experience, the students will observe the moon covering around 83 percent of the sun’s light. This will be a very slow process starting around noon, peaking around 1:33, and ending around 3 o’clock. Thank you to BASF for making this experience possible for the students at Escambia County Middle School.”